Yesterday would have been Charlie Kirk’s thirty-second birthday. It still doesn’t seem real that he was taken from us by an assassin’s bullet in Utah just over a month ago. There is nothing we wouldn’t do to bring Charlie back, but what we can do is continue to honor his legacy.
And, wow, what a powerful example we had at the White House yesterday of how he lived his incredible life. President Trump posthumously awarded Charlie the nation’s highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
A Beautiful Event
I made the trip to Washington, D.C., for the event. The weather was supposed to be poor, but it ended up being a beautiful day and the ceremony was held outside in the newly revamped Rose Garden. It is an absolutely stunning gathering space now, and President Trump made beautiful use of it.
The president was standing in front of us and just behind him was the Eisenhower Executive Office Building with the three flags – one a little higher than the others. The sun was starting to come down in the sky just beyond him, so those of us who were in the audience had the sun on our faces. It was about 70 degrees.
It was beautiful. There was just something ethereal about it with the sunlight on us and the warmth hitting our faces as President Trump talked about Charlie. Speaking of the good weather, Trump even said, “God was watching.”
The president was in a good mood. He had been on a whirlwind tour of the Middle East in the 48 hours prior and, as he said to us yesterday, had to turn down some very powerful meetings with some very rich countries who really wanted face time with him because he needed to get home to honor his friend Charlie Kirk. And he paid perfect homage to him.
‘Superhuman Strength’
The only people to speak were Trump, a serviceman who read the actual resolution giving Charlie the medal, and Charlie’s widow Erika Kirk. Erika accepted the award on his behalf and delivered powerful remarks. I don’t understand where her superhuman strength comes from.
I don’t think the team would mind me telling you that somebody had tried writing a draft of a speech for Erika and she said she had to write it herself so that it was in her voice and said what was in her heart. So, she wrote that speech we heard yesterday.
It is amazing when you hear her talk. One of Charlie’s colleagues said to me when I went to Arizona to host The Charlie Kirk Show last month that they were feeling comfort in being around Erika because it was like being around Charlie. And I have to say, I totally get it. Spending time with her or even watching her speak, she is not the same as Charlie – their style is different – but the messaging is really spot on.
The tears were flowing, but she was the picture of class, strength, and resilience. Here is a bit of what she said:
“The very existence of the Presidential Medal of Freedom reminds us that the national interest of the United States has always been freedom. Our founders etched it into the preamble of our Constitution, and those words are not relics on parchment. They are a living covenant. The blessings of liberty are not man’s invention, they are God’s endowment. Charlie lived for those blessings, not as abstract words, but as sacred promises…
Honestly, President Trump, I have spent seven and a half years trying to find the perfect birthday gift for Charlie. Now, I can say with confidence, Mr. President, that you have given him the best birthday gift he could ever have.”
A Bittersweet Day
Obviously, it was bittersweet. Charlie, of course, didn’t receive this honor while still alive. We all thought there would be time. Everyone thought Charlie would have time to run for and become and be president (I mean, literally everybody I have spoken to believed that would happen), and then you get your honors late in life. That is just generally how it works.
But, amazingly, the award was appropriate. Think of what he did in his 13 years at Turning Point USA and, good gracious, did he earn it. But it wasn’t given to him until he was gone, and so there was something bittersweet about Erika having to accept it for him.
President Trump also declared yesterday National Day of Remembrance for Charlie Kirk with a proclamation. “I call on the American people to assemble on this day,” it read, “in their respective places of worship, there to pay homage to Charlie’s memory.”
Better Together
The other dynamic that jumped out at me was how the whole day was classic Charlie. What did Charlie do at his Turning Point? He brought people from different parts of the conservative movement together. And he would have loved to see everyone who gathered yesterday because we were all together.
There were those of us from the digital lane like me, Tucker Carlson, Benny Johnson, and my guest today Jack Posobiec. And then there were people from more traditional media, including nearly all of my former Fox News colleagues – Jesse Watters, Bill O’Reilly, Sean Hannity, Judge Jeanine, Laura Ingram. That’s me above with Benny and Jesse.
It brought together the two worlds of the conservative ecosphere when it comes to broadcasting and the people who really are changing this country for the better. There is a bit of a rivalry between us and them. You know, we think we’re the future in new media, and they would disagree.
But there was none of that yesterday. There was just togetherness. There was a softness and kind of a love.
You can check out Megyn’s full analysis by tuning in to episode 1,172 on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you like to listen. And don’t forget that you can catch The Megyn Kelly Show live on SiriusXM’s Triumph (channel 111) weekdays from 12pm to 2pm ET.